The Role of Quality Assurance in Software Development Projects: Software Project Failures and Business Performance

Despite rapid advances in all facets of technology, the software industry still struggles with the formidable task of developing software applications that meet quality standards, time pressure, and budget constraints. Problem factors in software development and how these have affected the maintainability of the delivered software systems requires a thorough investigation. This study explored how systems development methodologies (SDMs) and the inclusion of quality assurance in all phases of the system development life cycle (SDLC) could help improve the software development process. The study provided a critical review of the extant literature on the acceptance of traditional SDMs and agile methodologies, and developed a conceptual framework for agile methodologies acceptance based on a knowledge management perspective. As an exploratory study, the results of this research generated more questions than answers. Yet, the findings illuminate several paths of inquiry researchers might consider to deepen the understanding of the inclusion of QA in the SDLC process.